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We can argue about culinary superiority, cultural influence over the last century, architecture, sports, whatever you’d like, all without a clear winner, but the one thing L.A. has on Detroit, hands down, no questions asked, is weather. Motor Trend technical director Frank Markus tested the 2014 Chevrolet SS in the beginning of November at GM’s proving ground in Michigan. As noted in Frank’s test, the weather was 40 degrees. Keep in mind that was ambient air temp; the ground was even colder. The Bridgestone tires used as original equipment on the SS are summer rubber, with a warning to use caution if the mercury gets anywhere near freezing. Since we later had the car here in California, and we can never turn down the opportunity to take a performance car to a closed course, we thought we would test it again and see what difference a few degrees would make.

Unfortunately, we tested the SS during a so-called frigid week in the L.A. area. It was only 54 degrees in the middle of December. You will be happy to know that as I write this, wearing shorts and T-shirt, it’s currently in the mid-70s on the patio of the coffee house where I’m “working,” but I digress. So what effect did 14 degrees have on the testing? Surprisingly, a fair amount.

In the original test, our SS ran from 0-60 mph in 4.9 seconds, corrected with a 1-foot rollout. Impressive, but not quite what the car should be capable of. Frank noted that he could hardly use any brake torqueing to launch the car, and found about 1800 rpm to be ideal with a slow, controlled roll into the throttle. We were able to use slightly more initial rpm (around 2300) and go flat pretty quick after sidestepping the brake. We recorded a bit more heroic 4.6-second 0-60 mph with correction and rollout. The Detroit quarter mile flashed by in 13.3 at 107.6, while the L.A. quarter happened in 13 seconds at 109.4 mph. Maybe more interesting is the 0-30-mph times, with the Detroit SS taking 1.9 seconds and the L.A. SS doing it in 1.7 seconds, both with correction.

Our correction factor is based on the SAE’s J1349 standards for testing that use 77 degrees Fahrenheit, 29.2 in-Hg and 0 relative humidity as ideal conditions. Our correction factor takes our raw numbers and adjusts to those conditions. During the testing in Michigan, barometric pressure was 29.9 in-Hg and humidity was 84 percent, while in California it measured 28.9 in-Hg with humidity 22 percent. The Detroit numbers were corrected down for both temperature and barometric pressure, while the California numbers were corrected down for temperature but up slightly for barometric pressure. Both were corrected up for humidity.

The extra grip in California translated to better braking performance from the big Brembo calipers. The Detroit SS was able to stop from 60 mph in an impressive 107 feet. With slightly warmer asphalt, our L.A.-based car was able to shave 2 feet off the number, stopping from 60 mph in just 105 feet. Both cars had great pedal feel and modulation, stopping consistently on every run. Somewhat to our surprise, the Detroit car managed to pull a slightly higher lateral acceleration number around the skidpad section of our figure-eight course, registering a 0.96 lateral g compared to the California car’s 0.92 lateral g. Since we average the lateral g number around the entire skidpad section, it is possible that the California car was overheating its tires by the end of the turn. Overall numbers for the figure-eight lap still go to the California car. The first SS turned a 25.2-second lap, putting it neck and neck with a CTS-V wagon we tested. The second SS was clearly faster in a straight line and managed a 24.8-second lap, which suddenly had it turning times with the likes of a BMW M5 and an Audi RS5. Those are some pretty impressive numbers for a car with relatively low-tech suspension. For comparison’s sake, a 2012 Dodge Charger SRT8 Super Bee we tested ran a 25.5-second figure eight.

These numbers are definitely closer to what we expected from the SS. The car has a great chassis, precise steering, and, despite its Aussie roots, an American soul. It’s closer to a European sports sedan than a Mad Max musclecar. This was more about the numbers than anything else. (If you are looking for more in-depth analysis and details, revisit the First Test.) The takeaway from this should be that the SS is capable of some pretty impressive numbers. And cold asphalt sucks.

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